ENGLISH CUMULATIVE EXAM REVIEW STUDY
SHEET 2026 ACCURATE RESPONSES FULL
SOLUTION
◉ Which statements describe iambic pentameter as it is used in
Shakespearean sonnets? Select two options. Answer: In a group of
two syllables, the second is stressed.
Each line contains five metrical feet.
◉ Read the excerpt from act 4, scene 3, of The Tragedy of Julius
Caesar.
[BRUTUS.] Messala, I have here received letters,
That young Octavius and Mark Antony
Come down upon us with a mighty power,
Bending their expedition toward Philippi.
MESSALA. Myself have letters of the selfsame tenor.
BRUTUS. With what addition?
MESSALA. That by proscription and bills of outlawry,
,Octavius, Antony, and Lepidus
Have put to death an hundred senators.
BRUTUS. Therein our letters do not well agree.
Mine speak of seventy senators that died
By their proscriptions, Cicero being one.
CASSIUS. Cicero one!
MESSALA. Ay, Cicero is dead,
And by that order of proscription.
How does this interaction affect the plot? Answer: It informs the
audience about events that took place off stage.
◉ Read the excerpt from "The Royal House of Thebes."
Some hours later, Creon in the palace was startled by a shout,
"Against your orders Polyneices has been buried." He hurried out to
be confronted with the guards he had set on the dead body and with
Antigone. "This girl buried him," they cried. "We saw her. A thick
dust-storm gave her her chance. When it cleared, the body had been
buried and the girl was making an offering to the dead." "You knew
my edict?" Creon asked. "Yes," Antigone replied. "And you
,transgressed the law?" "Your law, but not the law of Justice who
dwells with the gods," Antigone said. "The unwritten laws of heaven
are not of today nor yesterday, but from all time."
Which archetypes best describe Antigone? Select two options.
Answer: the tragic heroine
the rebel
◉ Read the excerpt from Julius Caesar, act 1, scene 2.
CASSIUS. 'Tis just;
And it is very much lamented, Brutus,60
That you have no such mirrors as will turn
Your hidden worthiness into your eye,
That you might see your shadow. I have heard
Where many of the best respect in Rome—
Except immortal Caesar—speaking of Brutus,65
And groaning underneath this age's yoke,
Have wished that noble Brutus had his eyes.
Which summary of the passage is the most accurate? Answer:
Cassius says that it is too bad Brutus cannot see his hidden greatness
, and that he has heard many nobles speak of Brutus when
complaining about the current government's problems.
◉ Read the passage from Animal Farm.
Old Benjamin, the donkey, seemed quite unchanged since the
Rebellion. He did his work in the same slow obstinate way as he had
done it in Jones's time, never shirking and never volunteering for
extra work either. About the Rebellion and its results he would
express no opinion. When asked whether he was not happier now
that Jones was gone, he would say only "Donkeys live a long time.
None of you has ever seen a dead donkey," and the others had to be
content with this cryptic answer.
How does the central idea of this passage—that older generations
are less excited about rebellion than younger ones—serve as social
commentary? Answer: It points out the overenthusiasm and
zealousness of the younger generation.
◉ Read the excerpt from chapter 10 of Animal Farm.
But the luxuries of which Snowball had once taught the animals to
dream, the stalls with electric light and hot and cold water, and the
three-day week, were no longer talked about. Napoleon had
denounced such ideas as contrary to the spirit of Animalism. The
truest happiness, he said, lay in working hard and living frugally.
SHEET 2026 ACCURATE RESPONSES FULL
SOLUTION
◉ Which statements describe iambic pentameter as it is used in
Shakespearean sonnets? Select two options. Answer: In a group of
two syllables, the second is stressed.
Each line contains five metrical feet.
◉ Read the excerpt from act 4, scene 3, of The Tragedy of Julius
Caesar.
[BRUTUS.] Messala, I have here received letters,
That young Octavius and Mark Antony
Come down upon us with a mighty power,
Bending their expedition toward Philippi.
MESSALA. Myself have letters of the selfsame tenor.
BRUTUS. With what addition?
MESSALA. That by proscription and bills of outlawry,
,Octavius, Antony, and Lepidus
Have put to death an hundred senators.
BRUTUS. Therein our letters do not well agree.
Mine speak of seventy senators that died
By their proscriptions, Cicero being one.
CASSIUS. Cicero one!
MESSALA. Ay, Cicero is dead,
And by that order of proscription.
How does this interaction affect the plot? Answer: It informs the
audience about events that took place off stage.
◉ Read the excerpt from "The Royal House of Thebes."
Some hours later, Creon in the palace was startled by a shout,
"Against your orders Polyneices has been buried." He hurried out to
be confronted with the guards he had set on the dead body and with
Antigone. "This girl buried him," they cried. "We saw her. A thick
dust-storm gave her her chance. When it cleared, the body had been
buried and the girl was making an offering to the dead." "You knew
my edict?" Creon asked. "Yes," Antigone replied. "And you
,transgressed the law?" "Your law, but not the law of Justice who
dwells with the gods," Antigone said. "The unwritten laws of heaven
are not of today nor yesterday, but from all time."
Which archetypes best describe Antigone? Select two options.
Answer: the tragic heroine
the rebel
◉ Read the excerpt from Julius Caesar, act 1, scene 2.
CASSIUS. 'Tis just;
And it is very much lamented, Brutus,60
That you have no such mirrors as will turn
Your hidden worthiness into your eye,
That you might see your shadow. I have heard
Where many of the best respect in Rome—
Except immortal Caesar—speaking of Brutus,65
And groaning underneath this age's yoke,
Have wished that noble Brutus had his eyes.
Which summary of the passage is the most accurate? Answer:
Cassius says that it is too bad Brutus cannot see his hidden greatness
, and that he has heard many nobles speak of Brutus when
complaining about the current government's problems.
◉ Read the passage from Animal Farm.
Old Benjamin, the donkey, seemed quite unchanged since the
Rebellion. He did his work in the same slow obstinate way as he had
done it in Jones's time, never shirking and never volunteering for
extra work either. About the Rebellion and its results he would
express no opinion. When asked whether he was not happier now
that Jones was gone, he would say only "Donkeys live a long time.
None of you has ever seen a dead donkey," and the others had to be
content with this cryptic answer.
How does the central idea of this passage—that older generations
are less excited about rebellion than younger ones—serve as social
commentary? Answer: It points out the overenthusiasm and
zealousness of the younger generation.
◉ Read the excerpt from chapter 10 of Animal Farm.
But the luxuries of which Snowball had once taught the animals to
dream, the stalls with electric light and hot and cold water, and the
three-day week, were no longer talked about. Napoleon had
denounced such ideas as contrary to the spirit of Animalism. The
truest happiness, he said, lay in working hard and living frugally.
